This article is one of a great many articles
written by Dennis Fisher about a very wide variety of subjects concerning
different dogs, such as obedience training, breeding, showing, health
matters, training problems and other subjects. All these articles appear
on Dennis Fisher's websites. Visit
http://www.allaboutgermanshepherddogs.com the site
that has been set up specifically for German Shepherd Dog enthusiasts, or
http://www.freedogadvice.com if you
interested in a breed other than German Shepherd Dogs

The color of the Giant Schnauzer is either
entirely black or a pepper and salt combination of black, gray and silver with
touches of white.

Because the coat is heavy, it does require a
fair amount of grooming and the undercoat has to be stripped on occasion.

Cropping of the ears in countries like the
United States and Europe, where cropping is allowed, is optional in so far as
the shows are concerned. In other countries the dogs are shown with the normal
hanging “V” shaped ears.

Although it is a large breed it does not require
as much exercise as some other “working” breeds.

This large dog, often a little more than 27
inches at the shoulder is a highly intelligent animal that does respond to
training but the training must be carried out by an experience trainer with
knowledge of the breed. It is by nature a very dominant dog and from an early
age it must be taught to respect the owner.

This is not as easy as it sounds and a
mild-mannered, gentle, patient approach may not be as successful with this
breed as with many other large breeds of dogs.

Whereas with some breeds only a fairly mild
correction is necessary where the animal has shown disobedience to commands,
with the Giant Schnauzer firmer training methods may be necessary. This does
not necessarily mean harsh training methods, but the dog must not have any
doubts whatsoever as to who is the boss.

Giant Schnauzers have done very well indeed in
Obedience competitions and have often held their own against the more popular
well-known breeds that are competition specialists.

But I believe that the reason for this is
because these winning Giant Schnauzers were handled by highly skilled,
experienced owners who knew precisely how to train a Giant Schnauzer.

It is an animal that has been successfully
used in Police work.

My experience of the smaller schnauzer in my
training classes seems to indicate that even with the smaller, far less powerful
Schnauzers, although very intelligent, they are self-willed, obstinate dogs that
required very firm handling.

With a dog as large and as powerful as the Giant
Schnauzer it is obviously essential to be in complete control at all times.

It is worth while repeating that firm training
does not necessarily mean harsh or cruel training methods, but it does mean that
the Giant Schnauzer has to respect the trainer who must insist that all
commands are carried out whether the dog wants to or not! .

It is a breed that is extremely devoted to the
family and very protective but because some specimens are so dominant it may
not be the ideal animal to have around with young children whose authority the
animal will not readily accept.

All things
considered, in spite of the Giant Schnauzers fine qualities as a guard dog and
as a loyal companion for an owner it has been trained to respect, it is not
necessarily a suitable dog for all families.